US Equity Investors to Focus on Fed Minutes, Government Funding Resolution, Q3 Earnings This Week

BY MT Newswires | ECONOMIC | 10/06/25 06:06 AM EDT

06:06 AM EDT, 10/06/2025 (MT Newswires) -- US equity investors will focus on the meeting minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee and quarterly earnings this week as they await a lifting of the partial federal government shutdown.

* The FOMC minutes are due Wednesday for September's monetary policy meeting, in which the committee cut interest rates by 25 basis points to 4% to 4.25%. That marked a restart of the Fed's easing program that was paused in December 2024, as per data compiled by Trading Economics, in response to the weakness policymakers saw emerging in the labor market, even though inflation remained above the Fed's 2% target.

* As of early Monday, the probability that the FOMC will reduce its target rate for fed funds by the same magnitude at its Oct. 28-29 meeting is 95%. The market is also pricing a further 25 basis-point cut in December.

* The market is awaiting whether the FOMC will have sight of data such as non-farm payrolls, which were due last week but not released as non-essential federal services have paused. Data due this week that may not be released amid the shutdown include international trade and jobless claims.

* Top congressional leaders from both parties dug in Sunday on their opposing demands amid the government shutdown, signaling the standoff will likely drag on when the Senate returns this week, CNN reported. "We're at a stalemate," Senate Majority Leader John Thune conceded on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures," calling Democrats' desires to reverse Medicaid cuts implemented in President Donald Trump's policy package a "nonstarter."

* Fed heavyweights due on the speaking circuit this week include Atlanta Fed President Raphael Bostic, Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari, Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee, Fed Vice Chair for Supervision Michelle Bowman, and Fed Board Governors Stephen Miran and Michael Barr.

* Q3 earnings due this week include Pepsico (PEP) , Delta Air Lines (DAL) , and Levi Strauss & Co. (LEVI) .

MT Newswires does not provide investment advice. Unauthorized reproduction is strictly prohibited.

In general the bond market is volatile, and fixed income securities carry interest rate risk. (As interest rates rise, bond prices usually fall, and vice versa. This effect is usually more pronounced for longer-term securities.) Fixed income securities also carry inflation risk and credit and default risks for both issuers and counterparties. Unlike individual bonds, most bond funds do not have a maturity date, so avoiding losses caused by price volatility by holding them until maturity is not possible.

Lower-quality debt securities generally offer higher yields, but also involve greater risk of default or price changes due to potential changes in the credit quality of the issuer. Any fixed income security sold or redeemed prior to maturity may be subject to loss.

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